Archive for the ‘Administrative’ Category

As my tenure at JAWRA draws to a close, it’s time for me to thank all those who make our journal possible and have contributed so much to its growth over the past nine years.

Thank you, authors, for choosing to publish in JAWRA! You are where it all begins. I hope your fresh ideas continue to inform and challenge our readers. New ideas are good for the soul. I remain optimistic your science will eventually let us live in harmony on this beautiful blue planet.

Thank you, reviewers! You are more than gatekeepers; your best efforts turn good manuscripts into great papers. May you continue to hold authors to high standards.

Thank you, Associate Editors! You and I know who does the heavy lifting around here. If I have shown any wisdom in this job, it is in listening to your wise advice.

Thank you, AWRA Staff! I love you guys! I won’t say more because I suspect you will find a way to keep me involved with AWRA. There are, however, two of you I must single out.

Thank you AWRA Executive Director, Ken Reid! You deserve a Profile in Courage Award for listening to your nerdy Editor and partnering us with Wiley. You could have continued business as usual into a slow decline, but you took the bold path to success. Bravo!

Thank you JAWRA Managing Editor, Susan Scalia! We’re up against a page limit, so I won’t list all the good things you do. I’ll just say this: You’ve shown again and again you care, you really care JAWRA is the best journal it can be. If I have one piece of advice for the new Editor-in-Chief, it is: “Do what Susan says!”

Thank you, AWRA Board! You gave me the freedom to run this journal in an effective and ethical manner. You also provided an outstanding conference program, the source of so many JAWRA papers.

Thank you, our partners at Wiley! You gave us the support and guidance to help JAWRA advance to the next level. The modern publishing world is a turbulent place, but I feel JAWRA is in a good position with you behind us.

Thank you, Jim Wigington, JAWRA’s incoming Editor-in-Chief, for stepping forward. Leaving was not easy for me. But, I wanted to do so before I got stale, and I wanted to place JAWRA into good hands. I feel you are the perfect choice to lead JAWRA into the future.

Steve Preston, JAWRA Associate Editor for Water Quality Modeling, has completed his term and asked to be relieved. Steve and I talked about this last summer, and he graciously agreed to wait until the new Editor-in-Chief was announced. Steve will continue to handle his currently-assigned manuscripts. Steve has been a real workhorse in dealing with tough modeling issues, and we will miss his expertise. Please join me in thanking Steve for a job well done!

Some of you may be wondering what changes you will see when Jim Wigington becomes Editor-in-Chief on January 1st. The short answer is, not too many, at least immediately.

Jim I talked a lot last week at the AWRA Annual Conference. We are quite in synch on the handover. I’m already cc’ing Jim on most decisions and consulting with him on some of the more difficult ones. So, there should be no surprises. Jim, of course, has to form his own opinion about each manuscript, but I wouldn’t expect any radical reversals. If Jim ever wonders, “What the heck was Lanfear thinking?” I will be around for him to consult.

With Managing Editor Susan Scalia and ScholarOne Manuscripts(TM), our administrative system remains intact, humming right along. This is different from every previous transition, where the incoming Editor had to build his own tracking system. For papers already in the ScholarOne, Jim easily will be able to see the processing and decision history.

I expect Jim will increase our rejection rate. This would have to happen in any event, because we have more submittals and a fixed number of slots. Jim also may try to place some emphasis on attracting more biological papers, but I’ll let him explain his thinking later.

Regarding email, the editor@awra.org address will, at least for a time, be redirected to both Jim and me. I will then provide my personal address to anyone who needs it.

I am very honored and excited to be the new JAWRA Editor-in-Chief (EIC). As I assume the role of editor-in-chief, JAWRA is very healthy. With a steadily increasing impact factor, JAWRA’s wide range of articles encompasses the biophysical and human dimensions of water systems. My goal is for JAWRA to continue to grow in rigor and influence so that it is prepared to contribute to the world’s ever-increasing water resources challenges.
I have been blessed to have a wide range of water resources experiences during my career. After working for three and half years as an assistant professor of forest hydrology at Oklahoma State University, I went to work for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Research and Development in Corvallis, OR. During my 28 year career with EPA, I led a wide range of interdisciplinary research efforts ranging from the effects of acidic deposition on aquatic ecosystems to connectivity within stream and river systems. My colleagues and I have published the results of this work extensively. I am currently a research and consulting hydrologist residing in Redding, California. I am also a courtesy faculty member in the College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences at Oregon State University.

At its meeting this afternoon the AWRA Board of Directors approved the appointment of Parker J. (Jim) Wigington as the new JAWRA Editor-in-Chief, effective January 1, 2015.

I am absolutely delighted with this selection. I will invite Jim to post his qualifications here, but let me say Jim is the ideal person to carry on the progress we have made over the past decade. Jim and I already have been working towards a smooth transition. Congratulations, Jim!

Just to avoid rumors, let me give you an update. The new JAWRA Editor-in-Chief has been selected and is awaiting final ratification by the AWRA Board of Directors at their November 1 meeting. An official announcement will be made shortly thereafter.

I know who was selected and am absolutely delighted. We already are working towards a smooth transition.

All 2013 manuscripts are in late stages of review, so we are able to estimate some statistics of interest to potential authors: (2012 numbers are in parentheses.)

46% of manuscripts were accepted (vs. 51% in 2012)

16% were, after review, rejected or withdrawn (21%); and

38% were returned without review (28%).

Time-to-first-decision for reviewed manuscripts (i.e. excluding those returned without review) was a median 89 days, with 90% decided within 127 days. These represent improvements over 2012.

The lower acceptance rate is commensurate with a higher number of manuscripts submitted. Similarly, the shift to more “return without review” decisions represents proactive measures to control the number of manuscripts under review.

I set two goals for myself when I assumed the Editorship of JAWRA in 2006: (1) make JAWRA the journal of choice for top authors doing important research; and (2) quit while I’m ahead. History will have to judge the first goal, though I think I’ve given it a good shot. Regarding the second, it’s time.

And how time has flown! This is my ninth year as Editor, the second longest in tenure only to Randy Boggess’ 10 years. I’ve approved publication of about 1,000 articles, and rejected an equal number. Our Impact Factor has tripled and our circulation has increased eightfold. Manuscript submissions are way up, and, thanks to ScholarOne Manuscripts™, our median time-to-first decision remains a very respectable 90 days.

I’m not burned out … yet. I still read every article and give each the thoughtful decision it deserves. But, there are some mornings my processing queue seems frightfully large, and the temptation to set my editing on “cruise control” looms greater. I don’t want to reach that point. Randy Boggess once said a journal periodically needs a new outlook. Not for the first time, I find myself agreeing with that wise gentleman. It’s time to pass the baton to another.

President-Elect John Tracy is heading an all-star search committee. Please see the AWRA website for an announcement of this opening. Given JAWRA’s status, I think we will draw many fine applicants for the job. I have the utmost confidence they will pick a fine successor to continue our wonderful journal.

There are many people for me to thank, and I certainly will do so before I depart at the end of December. Meanwhile, I still have issues to get out, and I need to keep the work queues filled to get the next Editor off to a great start.

I am pleased to announce the finalists for the 2014 Boggess Award. All are really excellent papers, and represent the best of the multidisciplinary science JAWRA brings to its readers. The winner will be selected by the JAWRA Editor and Associate Editors, and announced by the AWRA President.

The William R. Boggess Award is given to the author or authors of the paper, published in the Journal of the American Water Resources Association during the preceding year, that best describes, delineates, or analyzes a major problem or aspect of water resources from either a theoretical, applied, or philosophical standpoint. Established in 1973, the Award honors William R. “Randy” Boggess, a member of AWRA, one of the first Directors, and a former President of the Association, who has also made significant contributions to AWRA as an Editor of JAWRA.